G&R Tactical’s store has been open about 2 weeks now. I will first admit that I am generally NOT a people person so this has been an adventure for me. I also treat my store like my home. So to see people just walk in, makes me nervous and I find myself with my hand on my .45 a lot. Ok, I am kidding, but I am still a bit uneasy when dealing with strangers.
My favorite question so far is “what does Tactical mean?”
The last couple days have been the best for “interesting customers.” The first one walks in with an old fishing reel that had a pin broken off in it. He wanted to know if I could drill the pin out. When I told him that I couldn’t help him, he advised me that the previous owner used to do this kind of stuff. :rolleyes:
Then yesterday, at about 0900 a older lady comes in with a bag of 12ga shotgun hulls. She asks me if I can close the ends of them for her as she wants to install Christmads lights in them. :eek: I advised that I couldn’t help her. I thought that was the end of the conversation, but she decides that she want’s to “chit chat” about her ex-husband. After about 30 minutes of this, I start playing with the pin on the CS grenade. I have no problem lighting off tear gas in my own shop if it will save me.
Luckily, some M4C members pop in and restore my faith as to why I opened up a retail shop. To them, I say thank you for making the drive and hanging out.
Ah, the joys of gunstore ownership. You are going to have days like that Grant…many of them. But you are also going to have the guy who walks in with a beautiful Colt or Winchester he doesn’t want anymore. It balances out.
I don’t know the neighborhood you are in but safety first all the time.
The one thing you may get to see and hear are conversations that will just make you shake your head. Gunstores are second only to bars as places where people say the dumbest shit you have ever heard. At least the bars have alcohol.
I have personally heard the harmless (I shot that squirrel right off that branch with my Marlin 39A. Had to be 300 yards) to the troubling (This will go right through body armor) to the illegal (I can make it full auto for you). Its best to have them move on although I had the State Police have a little chat with number three.
Tremendous amount of patience involved in retail. You’ll always have to sort through the plain dumb questions and people vs. the intelligent and/or reasonable ignorant ones. Remember we are all ignorant, just on different issues.
Watch out for the ones who come in and act dumb/ignorant just to see what you know.:eek:
I consider myself a pretty good all around shooter (hunt, trap/skeet, target shoot and of course tactical weapons) so I am looking forward to getting the “how much do you know questions.” I am also much younger than 90% of the customers that come into the store so they most likely think that I know nothing.
See that’s good having a good all around base of knowledge since you mentioned there’s alot of hunters there and the local BR ones. I wish more shops around here would actually carry more AR stuff in the store. This is good for the people that don’t know about the accessories and don’t like special ordering to find out.
… I thought that was the end of the conversation, but she decides that she want’s to “chit chat” about her ex-husband. After about 30 minutes of this, I start playing with the pin on the CS grenade…
You’ve got to have a signal with other employees for this. When you give them the signal, the walk up to you and say “You’ve got a phone call in the office” or something similar so you can politely excuse yourself.
Cohiba was right about the guns that walk in the door. I worked at a gun store and little old ladies would walk in all the time with their deceased husband’s gun collection that they’d want to get rid of for practically nothing. We’d almost get in fist-fights over some of the stuff!
Just to reiterate some of the stuff already said, yes, people in the gun stores here think they know it all. I’ve only been a customer and I have overheard the patrons speaking exactly how you said Cohiba. Sadly my 2 local gun stores cater to these people. I guess selling a ton of high points and kel-tecs is profitable.
Grant, I too look young when I go into the gun stores. In fact I still get carded when I ask to see a gun That’s not what bothers me though. What gets to me is when the clerks at the store would rather help some 50 year old, beef jerky eating dumbass or some obvious lowlife thug then me just because they don’t look like they’re in high school. (Yes I still look that young). I mean damn, half these people in my local gun stores are lowlifes who speak horrendous English and they’re obviously just there to buy a “throw away” as I heard one patron call it:rolleyes:. My favorite (read absolutely most retarded) gun store quote has to be, “ My wife’s gonna buy it fo’ me ‘cus she ain’t gots no felonies.” Ugh! Maybe it’s a New Mexico thing.
Ok rant off. I just wanted to tell you not to be a dick to people that look young. Sure my clothes might be a bit baggy, and I still can’t grow a full beard but it’s not like I go in there with WestSide tattooed on my neck, and a blue bandana hanging out of my back pocket. Those are the people I would refuse service to. Try not to shoot any of these dumbasses. I’m sure glad they don’t make it in here (M4C).
I bet the locals think that I will never survive with selling those high priced AR’s. They are most likely a litte pissed that I don’t have single shot H&R’s or beef jerky.
Its just me and two dogs in the shop. I will just give the dogs a quick command to get in the back and pull the pin.
I had a guy yesterday tell me that he has NEVER spent more than $200 for ANY weapon. So the chances of me seeing some really nice weapon to buy is slim to known I think.
You need your shop’s phone on speed dial on your cell phone. When they are talking and talking you dial the shop from your cell phone surreptitiously. When the shop phone rings, you excuse yourself.
Another thing that really pisses me off is when the people behind the counter don’t know squat.(yet they think they do) Make sure to hire gun people who like learning new things and aren’t afraid to admitt they don’t know all the answers.
Some of the best and worst times were in my own gunshop. You definately need to relax when around the customers. The old saying of “Be kind to everyone you meet and have a plan to kill them” applies here. Being a cop in conjunction with my store made me much more comfortable with dealing with the bottom of the gene pool as they were most of my “clients” at the day job. The guy who worked for me was always a little paranoid and standoffish. It cost sales. You will be cured the first time some total dirtbag buys half your store out or becomes a great customer because you didn’t treat the 20 year undercover narc like crap.
Good luck, it can also be fun…remember, a long time ago Colt SAA and 1911’s used to cost less than $200:D .
Pah-Lease, 2 weeks isnt long enough to see anything, not to say you dont get any interesting folks in 2 weeks.
Last week I was informed the standard A2 configured AR15 is a “Mans Rifle”. A real man dont need no flashlights, red dots and rails on his rifle.
For the folks who ask about “Tactical” and “What will someone do with that”, I now look them in the eye and tell them, “Kill People”.
Wait until the “What will you give me for this” people start coming in. I get a lot of them in December. Customer walked in with a SW 686 in the box and askes what I’d give him for it.
me - $200.
him - Its worth more than that
me - not to me its not.
him - storms out the door
And dont forget the “What trade in will you give me for this”. - and its usually something you dont want.
Last year a guy brought in some lever action odd ball caliber rifle and wanted to trade it in for a revolver I had in stock. I told him it wasnt worht more than $50 because I didnt want it. He kept asking, and pleading, until another customer in the shop turned to him and said "Dude, look around at the fucking walls, you dont see any of that cowboy shit in here, he dont want it.
Forgot to mention, I’d love a location like yours. I’m in a little strip mall, in down town Sylvania. I get a steady flow of passers by who stop just to see what I have. They are usually the “What do you need this for?” people. Theres a reason the store is only open to the public 6 hours a day, 4 days a week.
Ok, I am kidding, but I am still a bit uneasy when dealing with strangers.